Olympics-Russian skater Valieva failed drug take a look at taken earlier than her golden Video games debut

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BEIJING — Determine skating sensation Kamila Valieva received a gold medal having earlier failed a drug take a look at and Olympic officers will struggle Russia’s determination to let her compete on the Winter Video games, the Worldwide Testing Company (ITA) stated on Friday.

The 15-year-old’s gold medal and Video games future now hangs within the stability because the Worldwide Olympic Committee (IOC) makes an attempt to attract a line within the sand over Russian doping.

Russian athletes are competing on the Beijing Video games with out their flag and nationwide anthem, due to sanctions towards Russia for earlier violations.

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Russia has acknowledged some shortcomings in its implementation of anti-doping guidelines however denies working a state-sponsored doping program.

Valieva delivered one of many highlights of the Beijing Video games to date when she landed the primary quadruple jumps by a girl in Olympic competitors.

Her Olympic dream, nevertheless, become a nightmare on Friday when the ITA revealed publicly that she had examined constructive for a banned angina drug in a urine pattern collected by Russian authorities on the nationwide championships in St Petersburg on Dec. 25.

The testing lab in Stockholm, Sweden reported on Feb. 8 that her pattern was constructive, the day after she had wowed the world together with her distinctive quadruple jumps and received the gold medal for her staff, who’re competing because the Russian Olympic Committee (ROC).

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It was not instantly clear why there was such a delay between her take a look at and the outcomes, which allowed her to journey to Beijing and participate within the first of her two occasions.

The IOC stated the dealing with of this case was initially with the Russian testing authorities after which with the World Anti-Doping Company accredited lab.

WADA declined to touch upon Friday. The Russian drug testing authority didn’t instantly reply to Reuters inquiries.

PROVISIONAL SUSPENSION

The Russian anti-doping company imposed a provisional suspension on Valieva after the Feb 8 consequence. She appealed a day later and her ban was lifted. The Russians didn’t disclose publicly the explanation for lifting the ban.

Now, the IOC will ask the Court docket of Arbitration for Sport to overturn the Russian determination to permit her to compete.

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“We’ve a one hundred pc coverage towards doping,” IOC spokesman Mark Adams stated in a press convention on Friday.

Adams stated the IOC had demanded {that a} determination be made earlier than Valieva is because of compete once more on Tuesday within the girls’s singles.

For days, a doping cloud has hung over the Russian teenager and the Olympics. The medal ceremony for the staff occasion was delayed for days and Russian media first reported that Valieva had examined constructive.

Valieva, who had already practiced on the rink adjoining to the Capital Indoor Stadium on Thursday https://www.reuters.com/life-style/sports activities/figure-skating-medals-ceremony-delayed-over-legal-consultation-2022-02-09, took to the ice once more for apply on Friday.

The feminine determine skaters of ROC have one other coaching slot obtainable at 1305 native time (0305GMT) on Friday, which they’re free to skip.

“We have to expedite this as shortly as doable for all these involved,” Adam stated. (Reporting by Julien Prétot and Karolos Grohmann; Modifying by Michael Perry and Ken Ferris)